Transcendentalism Basics
What is Transcendentalism?
A philosophical movement emphasized the inherent goodness of people and nature.
What was Emerson's seminal work that lays out the foundation of Transcendentalist philosophy called?
Nature
What is Thoreau’s most famous work, detailing his experiment in simple living?
Walden
What was Whitman’s collection of poetry that celebrates the human spirit and democracy called?
Leaves of Grass
What was Eliot's philosophy of time and consciousness?
Eliot's philosophy of time and consciousness develops in three stages. In The Waste Land period, in which man is time-ridden and unconscious, he is unable to confront time and create his own being by reconciling his present with his past or "other".
Transcendentalists believed this aspect of nature was key to spiritual enlightenment.
The natural world
What is Emerson's essay advocating for individuality and personal intuition called?
Self-reliance
What is Thoreau's essay that argues for nonviolent resistance to unjust laws called?
Civil Disobedience
What was the famous poem from "Leaves of Grass" that begins with "I celebrate myself, and sing myself" called?
Song of Myself
What was Eliot's most famous poem, often seen as a hallmark of modernist literature called?
The Waste Land
This was the central concept of Transcendentalism, emphasizing an individual's inner spiritual essence.
Over-Soul
Emerson’s coined this central term in Transcendentalism that means the universal spirit to which all humans return.
Over-soul
Thoreau spent two years living near this pond, which became the setting for his most famous book.
Walden pond
What was Whitman’s style of poetry, which breaks away from traditional forms and structures?
Free verse
What was the poem by Eliot that explores the inner thoughts of a modern, indecisive man called?
The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock"
What were the 3 main characteristics of Transcendentalism?
Three essential characteristics or principles: individualism, idealism, and the divinity of nature.
What were Emerson's main themes?
Education, Process, Morality, etc
What was the concept that was central to Thoreau's philosophy, advocating for a simple, mindful existence called?
Simple living
Whitman often wrote about this concept, reflecting his belief in the interconnectedness of all people (think politics)
Democracy
What main themes did Eliot's work portray?
Eliot expresses the themes of time, death-rebirth, levels of love (and attitude toward women), the quest motif on psychological, metaphysical, and aesthetic levels.
This term describes the idea of relying on oneself and trusting one’s own instincts and ideas.
Self-reliance
What does Emerson believe of society as a whole?
He emphasizes that believing, trusting, relying on oneself to lead the life one wants. Emerson writes, Society everywhere is in conspiracy against the manhood of everyone of its members.
What is Thoreau's main Transcendentalist belief?
Thoreau believes in the individual's power to live an everyday life charged with meaning, and he has faith in self-reliance over societal institutions, focusing instead on the goodness of humankind and the profound lessons it can learn from nature.
What Transcendentalist themes did Whitman's work highlight?
Democracy, the supremacy of self and nature, universal communion of all people, the mystery of life and death, and the spirituality found in nature.
What was the concept in Eliot’s work that refers to the fragmented and chaotic nature of modern life called?